Martello Tower

Martello tower is a distinctive masonry FORTIFICATION used in defence of BRITISH NORTH AMERICA in the first half of the 19th century. The name is likely derived from references to a stone tower on Cape Mortella in Corsica, which had proven particularly resistant to an English attack during the French Revolutionary Wars. Round towers had begun to replace square towers about the year 1000 AD, reflecting improved skills of masons. The advantage was that a round tower offered fewer blind spots to shelter an attacker and better deflected projectiles.

The 16 squat, flat-roofed towers built in British North America from 1796 to 1848 were distributed as follows: Halifax (5), Saint John (1), Québec City (4) and Kingston (6). The towers were built during times of tension with the United States. The ones at Halifax and Québec City were built in the years leading up to the WAR OF 1812, and the one at Saint John was built during that military conflict (see CARLETON MARTELLO TOWER NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE). The Kingston towers, constructed 1845-48 at the height of border tensions with the US, were the most complex in design. None of the towers was ever subject to attack; 11 have survived.

See also CANADIAN-AMERICAN RELATIONS.

Author JAMES MARSH

Links to Other Sites
Historica-Dominion Institute
The website for the Historica-Dominion Institute, parent organization of The Canadian Encyclopedia and the Encyclopedia of Music in Canada. Check out their extensive online feature about the War of 1812, the "Heritage Minutes" video collection, and many other interactive resources concerning Canadian history, culture, and heritage.

Plains of Abraham
A concise illustrated history of the Plains of Abraham, the Fortifications, and other famous Québec city landmarks. Click on "Battles of 1759 and 1760" (on the right side) for information about related events. From the National Battlefields Commission.

Fortifications of Québec National Historic Site
This Parks Canada site is dedicated to the Fortifications of Québec City. Includes nicely illustrated historical notes about the French and British contributions to the fortifications.

The Canadian Register of Historic Places
Canada is home to a vast array of fascinating historical sites. Many of them are illustrated and described in this searchable online database of Canadian historic places that are of local, provincial, territorial, and national significance.